High Stakes
by Axelrocks
Summary: Merle wins a night with Ed Peletier's girlfriend. However, he's not the one who's going to spend time with her.
1. Chapter 1

**This idea came to me randomly one night while I was lying in bed and I was desperate for something new to write for Caryl, so here you all are! :) I hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

Cigarette smoke curled up to the dingy ceiling light and loud, boisterous laughter could be heard, even if one was standing outside. Tonight was Poker Night. Tonight was Merle's turn to host Poker Night. So, six men were squeezed into the Dixon's small living room, shuffling cards on an old card table.

Poker chips and various objects sat in the middle of the table as each man kept their eyes on their hands and each other's faces, looking for bluffs. The stakes were steadily rising. Axel had bet his watch, not exactly a Rolex, but had been worth over a hundred dollars. Another man emptied the contents of his wallet which had contained a few fifties. There was also a ring from an ex-wife and a slip of paper betting a set of expensive tools.

"I'll throw in my bike." On a sheet of paper, Merle wrote _motorcycle_ and threw it in the middle. Everyone knew shit had just gotten real. Merle loved his bike (some suspected even more than his brother Daryl). "Now, what do you got for us, Ed." Five pairs of eyes went to the youngest man at the table at only twenty-three.

"Uh, I ain't got anything."

Rounds of 'bullshit!' went around the table.

"You got any tickets to a game?" Axel asked. "Like the Braves? I haven't been to a game since I was little."

"Some of your grandmother's old jewelry?" Oscar said, fingering the large gold ring on his right hand fondly. His grandmother had given it to him when his grandfather had died.

"Stock market shares?"

"Lottery tickets? Preferably ones with winning numbers."

Ed shook his head at everything the guys were throwing at him. "I don't have any of those things. Oh!" He reached into his pocket and took out a delicate gold chain with a tiny heart at the end. "Was going to give this to my girlfriend, but I suppose I could throw it in the pot."

Merle stopped him from doing so with a hand on his wrist. "Where the hell did you get that? A gumball machine." He took the chain and inspected it. "There's no way you spent more than fifteen dollars on this junk."

"It was twenty dollars and I got it from Wal-Mart!" Ed snatched the chain back. "So, can I put it in or what?"

"Hell no!" Merle cried. "If I'm puttin' my precious ride in the pot, there's no way I'm lettin' you put in a piece of shit jewelry and callin' it even."

"Hmm, you do have that cherry red Mustang," Axel suggested, standing up and peering out one of the windows. "Why don't you put that in?"

"Hell no!" Ed protested. "That's my baby and I'm not about to risk losing her."

"Then, how about a night with your girl?" Merle said with a smirk. No one around the table had seen what Ed's girlfriend looked like, but a night with a woman was appealing to them. No matter how she looked.

"What?"

"A night with your woman," Merle repeated. "When I say night, I mean a night of spending time with her. Relax, man. I wasn't talking about fuckin'. We're all desperate for time spent with a woman, since we ain't as lucky as you."

Ed thought a moment and reached for a sheet of paper. "Fine," he agreed and wrote _night with girlfriend_ on it. "It's better than risking my baby and don't even thinking about touching my girl. She's mine."

Half hour later, Merle's arms encircled the stack of chips and paper in the middle of the table and pulled it toward him. He had been the big winner of the night and though, the men grumbled at their losses, Merle had won fair and square.

"See you all next month!" Merle crowed as his friends got up to leave, including Ed. However, the older man stopped him. "Oh, and bring your girl over here next Friday at around seven, okay? I'll have an evening planned for two."

Ed rolled his eyes and walked to the door. Merle grabbed his arm and stopped. "You don't bring her, Ed and you'll have me and the other guys to deal with. We don't take kindly to those that try to cheat us."

"Okay, okay. She'll be here at seven."

Merle released him and smiled. "Make it 6:45. Now, get out of here and good night!"

* * *

 **Next Friday- 4:00 PM**

"What?"

Daryl had just gotten home from work at the local garage, covered in grease and motor oil to find Merle waiting for him in the living room. Normally, at that time, Merle would be in bed resting up for a night on the town.

"You heard me little brother. I got you a date."

"Ain't interested." Daryl shook his head, dismissing the idea and walked past his brother, heading to his room.

Merle stood from the couch and reached for his brother's arm. "You'll want to be interested. Trust me." Daryl didn't trust Merle more than he could throw him. Which wasn't very far.

"Whatever." He wrenched his arm free and continued his journey to his room and bed. The day had been a hard one and all he wanted to do was nap, not deal with his older brother now.

"You better be ready at six-thirty, little brother," Merle called after him and took his seat back on the couch. "And in somethin' decent, too."

Two hours later, the walls to their house were about to fall down- wait, was there earthquakes in Georgia? Daryl flipped to his side and slammed a pillow on his head. As long as he protected that part of the body, he would be fine and could go back to sleep.

"Daryl, if you don't get your ass up now, I'm comin' in there!" Merle shouted from the other side of his closed door. The shaking started again as Merle pounded on the wood with his fists. Daryl was surprised the door didn't splinter.

"Okay, okay. I'm up!" He shouted from his bed and sat up.

"Good. You have just enough time to get a shower before your date gets here." Daryl opened his mouth to protest and tell his brother one more time, that he wasn't going on this date, when Merle spoke again, "When you see the girl, you'll definitely want to go on this date."

"Doubt it," Daryl mumbled and gathered his clothes before heading to the shower.

* * *

"I can't believe you did this, Ed!"

"Listen, baby. It's only for one night and knowing Merle Dixon, it'll probably just be at a bar or somethin'." Together, Ed and his girlfriend were sitting in the Dixon's driveway in Ed's cherry red mustang.

"That's not the point," she said. "How could you put me in the betting pool? Am I just an object to you?"

"It was either you or my mustang." Ed rubbed the steering wheel lovingly while his girlfriend blinked away the tears. They had been going out for two months and lately, she had been feeling inadequate in the relationship...or pressured. Especially when Ed was drinking. She wasn't ready for _that_ step in their relationship, yet. She wanted to know that Ed loved her before giving him something so precious.

"All right, it's 6:45. You should go knock on the door." She rolled her eyes and opened the door to the mustang but Ed grabbed her arm before she could step out.

"You better not let Dixon touch you." The grip on her arm tightened to the point of pain. She tried to wrench free, but he kept a strong hold of it.

"I think I can let him do whatever he wants,especially since I'm nothing more than an object to you, Ed!" Finally, her arm was free from his grasp, but it throbbed from where his fingers had dug into her flesh.

"You do and you'll be sorry."

Ed had never threatened her like that before but right now, she didn't care. Tonight was going to be the worst night of her life and it was all because of her 'boyfriend'. She slammed the door to his precious baby, glared at him one more time and went to knock on the Dixon's door.

* * *

"She's here!" Merle called to the closed bathroom door. "I hope you're almost done in there." There was no response from the bathroom and Merle shook his head, hoping he wouldn't have to drag Daryl out.

He opened the front door just in time see Ed's mustang drive away. When he looked down to Ed's girlfriend, he was taken aback by the fierce glare the woman was sending his way.

"I'm here, Merle," she snapped. "Let's get this over with."

Merle could tell that she didn't take kindly to being all but forced to do this, but in the end she would be thanking him. He hoped. Ed wasn't the man for her. He was an idiot. "You ain't goin' out with me, missy," he said just as the bathroom door opened. Merle stepped aside. "You're going with my brother, Daryl."

Merle looked at his brother just in time to see Daryl's eyes widen when he set them on the woman. "Carol?"

The glare from earlier faded from Carol's face and she smiled. "Daryl! I am so glad I have to spend the evening with you and not your brother." Merle wasn't offended by the words. Instead, he went up to Daryl and clapped a hand on his back.

"Told you that you'd want to go on this date."

* * *

 **There should be one more part after this and I'll try to get it up as soon as possible!**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

They had gone to school together, that's how they knew one another. During their senior year, they had English class and Carol had taken a seat next to him the whole semester. They had even done a project on one of Shakespeare's plays. It was probably the only 'A' Daryl had gotten in that class.

Carol had swung by the Dixon place once during the project to pick Daryl and they had dinner together. That night, he had come home moon-eyed and Merle knew that his brother must have liked the girl. But Daryl was a coward and they had graduated high school without Daryl asking her out. Merle knew she would have said yes, too.

Up until she started dating Ed, she had worked at the convenience store down the road. Daryl had looked for every excuse to go down there and it hadn't taken Merle long to figure out why.

So, Merle had had the Poker Night planned for weeks now, waiting for the perfect opportunity to start playing high stakes poker. That last night of playing the card game, he had been feeling lucky and had thrown in his motorcycle, knowing that other high bets would have to follow. Ed would never put in his precious mustang, so his girlfriend was the next best thing.

Hopefully, after tonight, Ed would no longer have a girlfriend.

"Well, I better let you two get goin'. Knowin' Ed, he'll be here right at midnight." He stepped aside and pushed Daryl forward. His brother looked slightly panicked and glanced back at his older brother with wide eyes. 'You're welcome,' Merle mouth and shoved him one last time before making his way to the couch.

Sometimes, he couldn't believe how great of a brother he was. He deserved an award or some shit like that.

* * *

"So, uh what do you want to do?" Daryl asked, feeling awkward as he shoved his hands in his pockets. If he had known Merle was setting him up with Carol, then maybe he would have taken more care in his appearance.

"I don't know. I was kind of forced into all of this." Carol didn't sound mad about it, but Daryl peeked at her face and saw that she did look hurt.

"Sorry about that," he apologized.

"It's not your fault." She brightened and quickly changed the subject. "Oh, there's that festival going on in the next town over. Ed didn't want to go because he was afraid someone would mess his car up." She rolled his eyes. "Then, when I offered to take my car, he said he didn't feel like it."

 _Ed's an idiot_ , Daryl wanted to say, but kept his mouth shut. Talking about someone else's boyfriend in front of them was probably a big no-no.

"So, do you want to go? I mean, we don't have to. It was just a suggestion."

Daryl shrugged. "Let's go. I haven't been to a festival in a long time." _Or ever_.

"Great!" Carol beamed and Daryl was reminded of why he liked her so much. Carol was beautiful. If only he hadn't been such a coward in high school, then maybe... _Maybe, what? She'd go out with you? Ha! The only reason why she's goin' out with you know is because Merle won her in a poker game._

After receiving directions from Carol, they arrived at the festival fifteen minutes later. It was already going in full swing and the place was crawling with people. The smells of fried food hit Daryl's nose and made his mouth water and screams from people on rides made him think someone was getting tortured.

Carol walked over to where he stood beside his truck. "So, what do you want to do first? Eat or ride rides?"

The rides looked fun and the food smelled good. "What do you want to do first?" He figured he should let Carol choose first. She was a lady, after all.

"Well, I am kind of hungry."

"All right. We can eat first, as long as you promise not to hurl when we get on the rides." Daryl wanted to slap himself on the forehead for saying something like that. That was no way to talk to a lady. Especially a lady like Carol.

However, Carol only laughed. "Deal. Let's just not go on any spin-y rides for an hour after we eat, okay?"

"You got it."

They had a hard time picking out what they wanted from the several different vendors. Everything was different, except that it was all fried food. "Ed doesn't like it when I eat food like this," Carol said, taking a bite of her corn dog. "He says I'll get fat."

"You ain't goin' to get fat from one damn corndog," Daryl grumbled, disliking Ed even more. "And he shouldn't tell you what you can and can't eat."

"You're right," she said quietly and they fell into silence.

When they had found the vendor for their food, Daryl had offered to pay for their meal, but Carol had pushed his hand away. Telling him that she could pay for her own food and it wasn't like it was a real date, anyway.

Daryl knew it wasn't a real date, though he wished it were. He had liked Carol since his sophomore year of high school, though he had never had a chance to talk to her until their senior year. If he had been brave, he could have asked her out, then she would be able to eat all the corn dogs she wanted.

"Dessert now or after rides?" She asked as they threw their sticks away. Now, they were heading toward the ride section of the festival.

"Uh, later?"

"Sounds good to me. Come on!" She reached for his hand and then, stopped. "I want to go on all the rides at least once before we have to leave!" Daryl tried his hardest to not think about Carol almost grabbing his hand.

They bought their wristbands and Carol led them to their first ride. As they waited for their turn, she looked to where the ferris wheel was. "I say we save that one for last, huh? Unless, you don't want to."

"Sounds fine to me," he said. Honestly, he would do whatever Carol wanted to do this evening. As long as the night would never end because after midnight, she would be Ed's again and they probably would never see each other.

Together, they went on every ride at least once. Some more than once. In those few hours, Daryl forgot about everything except for that moment and Carol. Never had he had so much fun in his life. When they had gone on the Ferris Wheel it was almost like they were the only two people in the world.

"We _have_ to do that again sometime, Daryl!" Carol exclaimed over her ice cream cone as they walked to Daryl's truck. "It was so much fun!" Her face was still flushed from the rides and Daryl didn't think she had ever looked prettier.

"You think Ed would let you come out with me, again?"

The mood grew tense and Daryl wished he could have taken the words back. But he needed- no, _wanted_ \- to know what Carol would say. Was there a chance that they could hang out again? Daryl would take it, even knowing that they would only be friends.

Carol sighed and threw the rest of her cone away in a garbage can. "Probably not. He hates it when I go out and he's not with me. It gets kind of irritating when I go bra or underwear shopping." At Daryl's red face, she quickly apologized.

"Sounds to me like he ain't a very nice guy." He braved a look at Carol, hoping to see her reaction.

"Ed's just...Ed," she sighed again and looked away. "It's not fair of me to talk to you about him. We're supposed to have fun tonight."

"I got an idea," he said. "You willin' to go with me to one more place before I take you back to my house. I figure we have at least an hour or two before Ed shows up."

"Okay. As long as you promise you haven't turned into a serial killer since we graduated," she teased.

"Promise." He smiled. "Let's go."

* * *

The place Daryl had in mind was only a ten minute drive from the festival and he knew the way by heart. It was a place he often went when things got too suffocating at home. Turning on a dirt road, he drove a ways before pulling off to the side.

"Is this where you plan to kill me, Dixon?" She teased and Daryl saw her smile in the moonlight.

"Naw. Unfortunately, I ain't got my favorite knife with me to do the job." He turned the truck off and shifted in his seat to look at Carol better. "From here, we're walkin', but you gotta promise me that you don't tell anyone about this place. All right?"

Carol saw that he was serious and nodded. "I promise."

"Good. Come on."

Even in the dark, Daryl was surefooted. He knew where every rock or tree root was. Carol on the other hand, didn't. Behind him was a continued string of curses as she kept tripping or stubbing her foot on something.

Taking pity, Daryl reached back with a hand. "Here, take it. I'll make sure you don't fall on your ass."

Carol gripped his arm and grumbled, "And you couldn't offer me it five minutes ago?"

 _Didn't know how you would react if I touched you_ , was on the tip of tongue, though Daryl knew he would have been mortified if he had let them slip. "Thought you'd be able to handle it," he finally teased,shocking himself further. "You've gotten soft since high school."

"Ha ha. So, what is this place you're taking me to?"

"Just a place I go to when I want to get away from my brother. I'm able to have some peace and quiet while I'm there."

"Sounds nice," she sighed.

At that moment, they broke through the tree line and stepped into a clearing. About twenty feet away, was a pond. The outer rim was covered in tall reeds and weeds and only a small section was open up to a dock.

"It's private," Daryl said and let go of Carol's hand. "Ain't no one goin' to bother us here."

Carol smiled, eyes wide in awe. "This place is beautiful, Daryl," she said and turned to him. "And the moon is out, so it makes everything look silver."

"Do you want to sit on the dock for a little bit?"

"Yes, please."

Ten minutes later, the two had taken off their socks and shoes to dangle their feet in the cool water. For all those minutes, Daryl kept trying to figure out how to bring up the subject of the talk they were going to have.

"So," he started. "Are you...happy? With Ed, I mean."

There was a pause and Daryl wondered if she was even going to answer it. "I...I find myself happier when he's not around...which has gotten fewer and fewer nowadays." She glanced up at him. "Does that make me sound like a bad girlfriend?"

"No, it doesn't," Daryl answered honestly.

One corner of Carol's mouth tipped up. "I'm glad. I know it should be normal for couples to see each other a lot, but Ed _constantly_ wants us to be together. Half the time, we just end up driving around in his mustang, which was fun the first few times. But now, it's just boring.

"I want to go somewhere fun, somewhere we haven't been before, you know? Instead of the same damn thing." She sighed and leaned back on her elbows to look at the sky. Things were silent for a few minutes.

"Why don't you break up with him?"

At the shocked, wide-eyed look Carol gave him, Daryl backtracked. "Shit, sorry. It ain't my place to say that."

"No, it's okay, Daryl. We're friends." She reached over and squeezed his wrists. "I'm sure you didn't come here to hear me rant the whole time. Tell me what's on your mind."

 _Fuck the prick and give me a chance!_ "Uh, if you aren't happy with Ed, then maybe he isn't the one for you." There. That sounded decent enough.

Carol didn't speak for a few minutes and appeared lost in thought. Daryl gnawed on the skin of his thumb and forced himself to look at the rippling water at the pond, not at Carol.

"You know what, Daryl?" She looked at him with clear blue eyes. "Maybe you're right."

"I am?"

"If Ed doesn't make me happy anymore, why should I still be with him? Especially, if he's not willing to the things I want." She reached for him again and this time grabbed his hand. "Thanks."

Daryl didn't know what to say with Carol grabbing his hand. "Uh. We should probably start heading back. It's getting late." The last thing he wanted to do was leave this place, especially with Carol's soft hand in his.

"Y-Yeah. You're right." She stood. With her hand still in his, she helped him up, too. "This time, you're helping me get through the woods the whole time and not just when you're tired of me tripping."

Daryl's mouth curled. "Yes ma'am."

* * *

When they pulled into the Dixon's driveway a little after midnight, they saw that Ed's red mustang was already idling alongside Merle's bike. "Uh oh," Daryl whispered and glanced at Carol with a little teasing smile.

Carol only rolled her eyes. "We're five minutes late. Big deal. We should have made him wait longer, in my opinion."

"Now, that would have been fun."

Carol giggled and then, turned serious. "I had a wonderful time tonight, Daryl. At first, I was pissed that I had to do this because of a stupid bet, but now I'm glad it happened." She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Let's not wait two years before we hang out with each other again, okay?"

"O-Okay." His face felt hot and the place where her lips had touched his cheek tingled.

Goodnight, Daryl."

"Night."

With one last smile, Carol climbed from the truck and walked over to the passenger's side of the mustang. Daryl waited a few more minutes before getting out and heading to the front door. It took all of his willpower to not turn around and wave at Carol.

* * *

"Where the hell have you been? It's 12:08!" There was no greeting or 'I missed you, baby. How was your night?' from Ed. Not that Carol had expected as much.

"Relax. We were only eight minutes late," she huffed and put on her seatbelt. "And you have no right to be angry, Edward Peletier. It was your fault I was out tonight!" Not that she minded. In fact, her night with Daryl had been better than any of her dates with Ed. Even in the beginning of their relationship.

"And Dixon better not have tried anything," Ed continued to grumble as they drove to Carol's house. "I'll kick his ass."

 _If he did_? and _I'd like to see you try,_ were on the tip of her tongue, but Carol kept her mouth shut and focused out the window. ' _Why don't you break up with him?_ ' Daryl's words played through her head. _'If you aren't happy with Ed, then maybe he isn't the one for you.'_

When they pulled into her driveway, Carol had made her decision. Turning to Ed, she said, "Come inside. I need to talk to you." Ignoring his smug smile, she got out of the car and walked to the front door.

* * *

 **As of right now, there will be one more part.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Not too terribly happy with this part, but here you all go! :)**

* * *

Ed hadn't gone to Carol's high school. He had gone to school in Atlanta where he had played on the varsity football team. No one knew that he actually spent most of his time on the bench, he still had been varsity. When he had seen Carol in one of his classes in college, he knew that he had to have her. His charm and looks had quickly won her over and they were dating.

Carol lived in a house her grandmother had left her about thirty minutes from school and Ed started to lease an apartment about ten minutes away from her. On weekends and during the summer, Carol worked at the local convenience store even though her schooling was fully covered and her grandma had also left her with quite a bit of money.

Ed hated that she worked. When she was working that meant she wasn't with him. So, every day, he would wait outside the convenience store and keep an eye on things. Carol hated it, but he didn't give a damn. Plus, he had to make sure she wasn't running around on him, either.

Every couple of evenings, a man about their age with shaggy dark hair would come up to the store. Though, he didn't stay long, Ed narrowed his eyes at him. There was something about the guy he didn't like. When he asked who it was, Carol had only replied that it was a friend from school.

Finally, a few weeks ago, Carol quit her job and was now home all day. Perefct. Now, if only she would allow him to finally fuck her. They had been dating for three months. Most girls he dated let him in their bed a week after going out.

So, when Carol invited him inside after her night out with Dixon, Ed finally thought she was coming to her senses.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Carol asked, after leading him to the living room to sit. Ed had been in her house once and hadn't really made it past the foyer. He wondered where her room was and how long it would be before they'd wind up there.

"No," he answered, getting a little impatient.

"Okay. I'll be right back." Carol disappeared for a few minutes, but returned empty handed. Maybe she was getting the room ready. A slow smile appeared on his face.

"What did you want to talk about, baby?" Sweet talk her and this would go by quicker.

"I think it's time that we broke up."

It took a moment for her words to register. "What?" He shot to his feet. "What the hell do you mean? Did you fucking cheat on me with Dixon?" He took a step toward her. She stood her ground.

"No, I did not. I'm not that kind of girl, Ed and after the way you've been treating me, I'm not the kind of girl that stays with a man like you. We're done."

Lightening fast, he grabbed her arm hard and squeezed. "You don't mean that."

"Let go of me. Now," she hissed.

"No." He squeezed harder. Several times in the past month, Ed had resisted the urge to slap Carol around. She was too headstrong for her own good. Now, all he wanted to do was beat the shit out of her. That would teach her not to break up with him. That would teach her that he was the only one who would want her.

"I said, let go of me." Her free arm went behind her back. "This house wasn't the only thing I got from my grandma." A gun was in his face, then. The barrel was only inches from his nose.

Another smile spread across his face. "You don't have the guts to kill me." He was calling her bluff.

"You're right. But I do have the guts to blow your balls off." The gun went from his face to his groin and she took the safety off. Ed immediately released her and stepped back.

"Get the hell out, Ed. If you ever come around here, I'll shoot first and call the cops last. I didn't want it to end like this, but you just showed me the disgusting piece of human flesh you are."

"Fine. But this isn't the last you'll hear of me," Ed sneered and backed up. "I bet you'll call me up tomorrow and beg me to take you back."

"Uh, no." The gun was unwavering in her hand. "And if you ever think of coming around here again, just know I'll always be packing. The more I see you, the angier I'll Get, which means I might just get angry enough to shoot your face off." She gave him a sweet smile. "Get the hell out. _Now_."

Ed left without another word.

* * *

The next morning, Carol woke and made sure that her gun was still on the bedside table. Pulling a gun on Ed had never been part of the plan to break up with him, but something had told Carol that she would need it. So when she had left Ed for those few minutes, she had retrieved. Thankfully, she had.

"I'm single," she whispered to the room and smiled. "And happy."

Last night had been one of the funniest nights she had in a long time and it was all thanks to Daryl. He was the reason why she had decided to break up with Ed. It would have happened eventually, but he had given her the courage to do it right then.

Climbing from her bed, Carol got dressed, shoved the gun in the waistband of her jeans and went down to the kitchen for some breakfast, though it was almost noon. An idea struck her as she ate a bowl of cereal. She should tell Daryl what happened. He would want to know and this would give them an excuse to hang out again.

Carol's heart fluttered at the thought. In high school, she had had a small crush on him before they had been paired up in English. After that the crush had grown bigger and she had a feeling he liked her, too, but neither one had the courage to do anything about. That could all change, now. Daryl was still the same as he had been in school. Quiet, kind and sweet. Hopefully, she hadn't changed too much and he still liked her. At least a little bit.

* * *

Carol pulled into the Dixon driveway, this time of her own free will, and was relieved to see Daryl's truck and Merle's bike still in the same spots as the night before. Pulling down the visor above her head, Carol checked her appearance once more in the little mirror before climbing from her car.

Her hand shook slightly as she raised it to knock on the door. There was no reason for her to be nervous, but she was.

Daryl was the one who answered and his eyes widened when he saw Carol standing there. "Guess you were serious about not waiting two years for us to hang out again," he said with a slight smile.

"I just wanted to come see you and tell you that I did it. I broke up with Ed last night." Something in the way Daryl's eyes light up made Carol's heart beat faster in her chest.

"Really? Great. Well, I mean, it's great if you did it because you weren't happy."

"i wasn't." She crossed her arms. "Not at all. You made me realize that."

The movement must have made the sleeve on her shirt rise up and Daryl's eyes zeroed in on the bruises on her forearms. "He hurt you." The words were said so menacingly that if they had been directed at Carol, she would have been frightened.

"He grabbed me and wouldn't let go. So, I pulled a gun on him." She smiled proudly. Even Daryl looked impressed.

"Really?"

"Yep. That got him out of my house fast."

"I bet." Daryl leaned against the doorway. "So, what do you want to do now?"

"Hm. Well, I-"

At that moment, a red mustang flew into the driveway and skidded to a hard stop, Daryl pulled Carol into the house and slammed the door shut, knowing that it was Ed. "Merle!" He yelled. "Peletier is here to see you!" Then, to Carol. "Come on. I know he's the last person you want to deal with, so you can hide it out in my room." His cheeks were slightly red in a blush.

"Okay."

Loud bangs came from the door and Daryl quickly ushered Carol into his room. "I'll be close," he said before shutting the door.

"Dixon! Open this damn door. I need to speak with you!"

Merle opened the door to his room just as he slipped on a shirt. His eyes were slightly bleary from having just woken up. "I'm coming, you little fuck!" He shouted back. He passed Daryl in the hallway and Daryl grabbed his arm.

"Carol's here," he said low. "Don't let the prick know."

Merle laughed. "So, she didn't go back with her boyfriend last night? What the hell did you do on that date?" When Daryl had gotten home the night before, Merle had already been passed out in his room.

"No, she just came by a few minutes ago and if he says that's her car, lie."

"Got it and once I get rid of him, you have some explainin' to do."

"Merle!" Ed was getting angrier and angrier by the moment. Merle walked past Daryl and muttered under his breath as he reached for the door and opened it.

Ed pushed Merle in the doorway. "What the hell did you do to my girlfriend last night?"

"I didn't do anythin'," Merle shrugged and spoke the absolute truth.

"Then, how come she broke up with me right after her little night out with you." The man's eyes narrowed and his face grew so red it was almost purple. "Did you say something to make her want to break up with me?"

"I didn't say anythin'."

At that moment, Daryl walked from where he was standing in front of his bedroom door to the kitchen. He walked right past the living room and when Ed spotted him, he froze. "You!" He cried. "You're the creepy prick who kept visiting my girlfriend at her job."

"What? My brother can't go to the convenience store without you makin' a fuckin' deal about it. At least he bought shit."

Daryl kept his cool, which was hard. The man standing in his living room had put bruises on Carol's arm. "I wasn't the creepy one, Ed. You were the one who waited outside every damn night."

"How the hell do you know that? You only came a few nights a week."

Daryl shrugged. "Maybe Carol told me. Maybe she also told me that she's fuckin' sick of you, too."

Ed lunged for Daryl, then. But Merle stopped him before he could reach the younger Dixon. "Whoa, now. There ain't goin' to be none of that. Especially in my house." Merle practically threw Ed to the ground.

"I know she's here, Dixon! That's her car out in the driveway. I know it is."

Daryl briefly glanced at his brother and Merle caught the look. "That ain't her car. That's a friend of mine's car."

"So you picked up another woman after dropping off Carol last night?"

"Hell yeah! Listen, your girlfriend is hot, but you said I couldn't touch her. So, I didn't."

"Oh. Hmm." Ed took a seat on the couch, uninvited. "How was she? Your lady friend? Was she hot?"

"Smokin'." Merle looked at Daryl and shrugged before taking a seat next to Ed on the couch.

"Can't wait to meet her. She still sleepin', then?" The way Ed was speaking made Daryl realize that he could care less about Merle's 'lady friend' he was trying to prove that it was really Carol's car out there. Both Dixons knew that even if they kicked Ed out, he'd probably still sit in their driveway. This way they would be able to keep an eye on the annoying prick. Sooner or later he would get tired and leave. Right?

"Yeah. Wore her out. It may be a few hours."

"I got time."

Daryl slowly walked back to his bedroom and opened it. Carol was sitting on his bed and jumped to her feet when he walked in. "He leave yet?"

"No," he sighed. "And he won't be leaving for awhile. Merle told him that the car out there was a woman's he slept with, so now Ed's waiting around to meet her."

"Fuck," Carol cursed and sank back down on the bed. "I suppose I can leave and just deal with his dumbass. It isn't like he'll do anything while I'm here."

"Naw, you ain't gotta do that. I'll figure somethin' out." He looked around his room, seeing if anything in there would be of us. But came up with nothing...until his eyes settled on the window. Carol saw what he was looking at and instead of look appalled, she smiled.

"Well, I've never snuck out a bedroom window before. Especially a boy's." She stood. "This should be exciting."

* * *

 **One more part...? Maybe.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

Carol and Daryl kneeled on Daryl's bed with their hands on the window sill. Thankfully, Daryl's house was only one story and it wasn't far to the ground. Though, his window was a little small. They'd fit, but didn't know how well.

"Do you want to go first or me?" Daryl asked, turning to Carol.

"Uh." A small smile spread across her face and a mischievous looked gleamed in her eye. "Why don't you? That way you can show me how it's done."

Outside Daryl's bedroom door, the voices of Ed and Merle could be heard. Neither one was known to be particularly quiet. Daryl didn't mind. However, if things grew silent, then he would start to worry.

"All right. Here I go." The thought of climbing out his window had appealed to him several times over the years, especially when his father had been alive and in the house, but he had never actually done it. He lifted one leg over the sill and hunched in on himself as he ducked to fit through.

Suddenly there was a crash and a muttered 'fuck'. Carol had closed her eyes the moment Daryl had started to slip and when she looked out the window, she had to stifle her laugh when she saw Daryl sprawled in the dirt. He glared up at her.

"You made me go first on purpose," he muttered and sat up to lean on his elbows.

"No, I didn't." Carol couldn't help but giggle. That hadn't been her attention, to see him fall, but it had been a worthy outcome.

"What was that?" Ed's voice sounded from the living room. "Sounded like a giggle. Is your lady friend having some fun without you?"

Carol panicked and practically threw herself out the window...and landed right on Daryl, who let out a grunt of pain at the contact. "Sorry," she whispered and pushed herself up into a sitting position. "I thought I heard Ed coming."

"S'all right." Daryl forced himself into a sitting position again. Carol was still sitting firmly on his lap and he found he didn't want her to move. "Now, what do you want to do?" _We could stay right here all day_ , his mind suggested.

Looking around, Carol didn't seem to mind at how close they still were and her eyes settled on the woods several yards away. "Why don't we go in there? You can show me all your secret spots," she said slyly and winked.

"Who says I got any?"

Carol placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed lightly. "Because you told me you did two years ago when I was over. Well, you didn't exactly say 'secret spots' but you said there were places you went to get away from everything."

Daryl remembered telling her that two years ago and flushed a deep red. It had been during one of the last times they had been together and he had planned on gaining the courage to ask her out. But obviously that hadn't happened. Maybe it would be different this time. "Okay, I'll show you where I go to get away. But first, you gotta do one thing for me."

She leaned close. "What?"

"Uh, gettin' off."

Quickly, she scrambled from his lap and flushed a tomato red. "Oh. Right."

* * *

Daryl reached for Carol's hand just as they were to step foot into the woods. "This way, you won't complain about trippin' all over the damn place," he said as a way of explanation.

"But it's daylight out."

"Do you want me to let go?" Daryl was feeling brave. There was a reason why Carol had come to his house the morning after her break-up. If she wanted to be only friends, she would have just told him in passing. No, she had sought him out to tell him.

Now, all he needed to do was take this opportunity and run with it.

"No," she said and squeezed his hand. "I don't."

Daryl smiled shyly her way. Instead of walking one behind the other with their hands clasped like last night, they walked side-by-side, as if they were a...couple. If Merle knew he was holding hands with a woman, he would have laughed his ass off. But Carol's hand felt too good in Daryl's for him to think much of anything at the moment.

"So, how often do you come out here?"

He shrugged. "Couple times of week. Especially when we need meat or when Merle irritates me too much. Bet you can't guess which one happens more?"

"Hmm...I wonder." She tapped her chin and giggled. "But he doesn't seem that bad, from the little I've seen of him."

"It's because you've only seen a _little_ of him. Once you start comin' around more, you'll see how he really is. An asshole."

"You want me to come around more? Didn't get enough of me last night?"

"Never." The word slipped out before Daryl could grab it and shove it back into his mouth. Fuck.

"What-?"

"Merle, I swear to Christ I just saw Carol go into the woods with your bastard of a brother!" Ed's voice broke through the trees and almost sounded as if he was right behind them.

"Shit, he must have looked outside the bathroom window or something and saw us," Daryl said and gripped her hand tighter. "Come on. He don't know these woods like I do." Carol had no arguments as Daryl led them off the path and deeper into the woods.

This was not how Daryl had thought he would be spending his Saturday afternoon, but he wouldn't have had it any other way.

* * *

They ducked under branches and ran around trees. Carol followed, hand still in his, with complete trust that he would make sure Ed didn't find them. "I can't believe he's trying to find me! We broke up and I made it clear that I didn't want anything to do with him."

"He's crazy." Daryl replied. "Crazy people do stupid things."

"Wish I had thought to bring my gun," she mumbled. "I left it in my car, thinking I wouldn't need it at your house."

"You didn't need it, until that crazy asshole showed up." Daryl led them through some more bushes and when they came to a creek, he slowed down and led them to a pair of large boulders on the bank. No one knew they were there unless they stumbled right on it.

Carol climbed up the first boulder and Daryl followed close behind. Leaning back on her hands, she tilted her head up and closed her eyes against the sun. "Is this Secret Place Number One?' She asked with a twitch of her mouth.

"Naw. It's Just-Stumbled-Here-Five-Seconds-Ago-Because-Your-Ex-boyfriend-Is-Crazy Place...number one."

"Oh. Catchy name, by they way."

Daryl shrugged. "I try."

While sitting there, Daryl made sure to remember exactly how they had gotten to this place. It may not have been somewhere he would have gone on his own, but with Carol it could quickly become one of his favorites. Especially if she came with him.

"Hey, Daryl?" Carol was looking at him now and Daryl's breathed hitched in his throat. The way she was looking at him right now...

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry for dragging you out of your house like that. If I had known Ed was going to come here and then, look for me I would ha-"

"You kiddin' me? This is the most fun I've had in a long time. Well, besides last night, of course." It did things to his chest when Carol blushed a pretty red and looked away from him. "I'd rather be out here, then cooped inside with my dumbass brother all day."

"Have you ever thought of living on your own?"

Daryl snorted and mirrored Carol's position on the rock. "All the time. But I'm afraid Merle would get in more trouble if I wasn't around to keep him in line."

"Sounds more like you're the big brother than he is."

"Feels like it to, most days," he sighed.

Daryl jolted when Carol reached over and squeezed his hand. "I'm sorry, Daryl." From the look on her face, Daryl knew that she really was.

"It's all right. Most days, he's fine and he acts like my older brother. Other days, when his addiction gets the better of him, well... I love Merle, I really do. But sometimes, I can't help but blame him for the pause in my life. Though, deep down I know I'm at fault, too. I should have gone to college after high school, but was afraid of the trouble he'd get into."

"He's a big boy, Daryl. Sometimes, he needs to take responsibility for his actions. He needs to know you won't always be there to pull him out of the holes he digs." Carol moved a little closer to him, their hands still clasped. "He's a grown man, he needs to act like it and you're a man with so much potential to be and to do something great with your life."

No one had ever told him anything like that before. He could do something great? Be something great? All he knew how to do was hunt and shoot a crossbow. Those didn't seem like qualities a great person would have. "You really think I could?" He asked

"Of course," she answered right away. "Just because we didn't talk until our senior year, didn't mean I didn't notice you."

"So, you were stalking me?"

The slightly serious moment was interrupted by her tinkling laugh. "No! Okay...maybe just a little," she teased and nudged him. "I always wanted to talk to you, Daryl. I just never had the courage."

"Huh? I can't see you as the scaredy type."

Unknown to them, or maybe it was known, their faces grew closer and Daryl wondered what would happen if he closed those few inches and kissed her on the mouth. Of course, his experience with kissing was zero, so she'd probably slap him. But...why was she continuing to get close?

Just before their lips touched...

"Carol! I know you're out here!" Ed's voice bellowed through the trees, startling the pair. "Come on out. I just want to talk to you."

Carol sighed and Daryl groaned. Of course, Ed would have to interrupt them. Daryl hadn't expected anything less. "Wanna get out of here?" He asked.

"You think he'll find us here?" She asked, looking doubtful.

"No, but he probably won't stop hollerin' for you. We can head back to the house and you can get your car." Daryl chuckled. "Maybe Ed will get himself lost in here." That would make his day.

"I'll go back to my car, if only you agree to come with me."

"Go with you where?"

" _My_ secret spot," she whispered.

Daryl's face flushed red and hot as the first thoughts in his mind at Carol's words were something dirty. "U-Uh, sure."

"Great!" Carol beamed.

Daryl slid from the boulder first and kept an ear out for Ed. When he determined the man's location, he motioned for Carol to join them and they were off back to the Dixon house. Merle was sitting on the couch watching television when they burst through the front door.

"What the hell, Merle? You didn't think to stop the bastard from followin' us?"

Merle barely looked up from the screen. "Little brother, you know them woods better than anyone. Figured it would be better to let ol' Ed loose in them than have him wait here for the girl to come back." Merle did have a point, but it didn't make Daryl any less angry. If his brother had kept Ed put, then maybe he and Carol could have kissed.

"Daryl," Carol tugged on his arm. "You ready to go?"

"Where you goin'?" This grabbed Merle's full attention from the TV to look at Carol.

"We're going on a date," she said and stepped in front of Daryl, with her hands on her hips. "One that he doesn't have to get because he won me in a game of cards."

Merle smiled. "Well, then, I take it Daryl didn't tell that I only did that for him."

Carol looked at Daryl over her shoulder. "What is he talking about?"

"Nothing. Let's go." He grabbed her hand and they were out the door, away from Ed and Merle.

* * *

Later, they were on the road, heading out of town. This time Carol was behind the wheel. "So, what was Merle talking about back there?" It had been silent up until that point. Daryl was hoping that the subject would be dropped.

"Nothin'," he answered.

"Did you tell Merle to make Ed bet me in the Poker game?" There was a slight trace of hurt in her voice.

"No!" He said a little too loudly. "Sorry. No, I didn't," he repeated. "I didn't even know he had done it until I came home from work the next day and I didn't know it was you until you knocked on the door."

The hurt went away and Carol smiled in relief. "Good. I'm also glad that Merle didn't go on the date. I don't know what I would have done. I may even still be with Ed..." Her mouth tilted down.

"You may still have been with him today," Daryl said. "But you're smart. You would have figured out that he wasn't the one for you eventually."

"Yeah. I' m just glad I don't have to be with him one more day, though." She shuddered. "Oh!" She brightened. "Here we are!" She pulled her car into a parking space in front of a building. They looked to be in a small downtown of some city. If it was even big enough to be called that.

" _Rose's Cafe_?" Daryl read and turned to her, looking doubtful. "This is your secret place?" Outside, a few people were sitting in wrought iron chairs and tables sipping coffee and eating sandwiches.

"Yep! Ed never knew I went here, so that's why it's secret. If he did, he would have insisted on coming with me every time I went or just watch me from across the street or something equally creepy."

"He did that when you worked at the convenience store," Daryl said. "I saw him every time I went." He froze after realizing what he said. "Not that I came by very often." Liar. He came by at least two to three times a week.

"I know he did that and I hated it," she frowned. "And I always enjoyed it when you came in, even though we didn't really talk."

That was all on Daryl. Seeing Carol was too much and nerves got the better of him every time he walked in the store. He was lucky that he was able to mumble a thank you after she rung him up.

"Now, come on," she said and opened the door. "I'm hungry and I want some really good coffee!"

* * *

By the time they had ordered their coffee and sandwiches, the tables outside were empty. Carol led him to a table close to the corner and a bit a ways from the other tables. If Daryl had been the one to choose their seats, it would have been this one.

"I sit here every time," Carol said and took her seat. "I can people watch and if there's other people here, they kind of hide me from the street just in case Ed somehow knew where I was going. Luckily, that never happened and will never happen."

And if it did, Daryl would kick Ed's ass. No hesitation. Hell, he should go back to his house right then and kick the prick's ass. He had no right to stalk Carol like he was doing. They had broken up and Carol made it clear that she no longer wanted to see him.

"So, is it good?" Carol looked at him. "The coffee?" When they had ordered, he had no idea what to get. The only kind of coffee he had ever drank was black and if he was lucky, maybe had a few scoops of sugar. He took a big gulp and instantly regretted it when it burned his mouth.

After a slight coughing fit, Daryl finally answered, "Yeah, it's good. Tastes exactly like molten lava." Carol giggled and handed him a few napkins to clean up his mess.

"You have to take small sips of it, Daryl. See?" Carol demonstrated, but the moment the liquid hit her tongue she spat it out. Daryl dropped his napkin and laughed. "What the heck? _Did_ they put molten lava in here?"

Daryl didn't stop laughing as he handed Carol a napkin.

* * *

Too soon they were back at the Dixon house. This time no red Mustang greeted them and both sighed in relief. Maybe Ed had given up. At least they hoped so.

"I had fun today, Daryl. Again," Carol said and turned to him in her seat. "I sense that this might be a recurring thing."

"It just might be," he answered confidently, though inside he was a bundle of nerves.

"So, I'll see you later. Probably soon? Maybe tomorrow?" She winked

"Yeah," he said and didn't look her way.

"Great!" Carol said with a smile. Things grew quiet between the two and she drummed her fingers on the steering wheel, eyes looking out the windshield.

Daryl took a deep breath and looked at Carol. _This is it_ , he thought."Uh, can I do somethin' before I leave?"

"Sure."

Daryl leaned across the space between them in the car, tilted his head and kissed Carol right on the mouth. When he moved to put some space between them, Carol's hand shot up and buried itself in his hair. "No, you don't, Dixon," she said, breath tickling over his mouth. "I've been waiting all day for this." She pressed their mouths together once more.

Daryl had been waiting all this life.

* * *

 **Not too happy with this part, either. But I hope you all like it! :) There _might_ be one more part. So much for it being a two-shot, huh?**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Now THIS is the last chapter, most definitely! I apologize if it seems choppy, but I hope you all still like it! :)**

* * *

It didn't like long before Carol found herself sitting in Daryl's lap as they made out in her car. Things were happening fast, but this has been years in the making. Carol had liked Daryl long before Ed had been in the picture. Now, all she wanted to do was kiss Daryl until Ed forever left her mind.

"So, does that mean we're...goin' out?" Daryl asked when they pulled away for air several minutes later. He looked nervous as he said that and Carol fought back the laugh and 'Would I be kissing you if we weren't?'. She didn't want to make him feel embarrassed about asking such an important question.

"Yeah. If you want us to be, that is?" It was her time to feel nervous.

"I wouldn't' be kissin' you, if I didn't."

Carol guffawed and slapped his chest playfully before leaning down to kiss him some more.

* * *

"Uh, well, I think I should probably let you go."

Carol reluctantly slid from Daryl's lap and went back behind the wheel. Daryl felt as if a part of him was missing once her weight was no longer there. He didn't know how long they had been like that and to think, all day he had been gathering his courage to kiss her. _One_ innocent kiss. Never in his life did he think that her tongue would be in his mouth or vice versa.

He didn't regret a damn thing.

"So, um, I'll call you before coming by tomorrow." Carol gripped the steering wheel and looked extremely interested in her dashboard.

"Or you can just stop by," Daryl suggested. "My door is always open...and so is my window."

She giggled at that and looked his way. "Don't tempt me. You may wake up one morning with me crawling through it."

"What a way to wake up. A beautiful girl crawling through my window to see me..." Carol blushed and Daryl boldly reached over to cup her cheek before leaning over to kiss her one last night.

"Come over," he said. "I don't care if it's through the door or window. I want to see you." He paused, thinking of how Carol said Ed was, always wanting to be with her. "Uh, unless you don't want to. Of course."

"You're not like Ed," Carol said, knowing where his mind had gone. "I want to see you and I know you won't stalk me every time I leave the house."

"Hell no."

"That's what I thought."

Daryl smiled. "Well, uh, I'll be goin' now. See you tomorrow." He opened the door, but before he shut it, he peeked his head inside once. "Be careful heading home, okay? I don't know where Ed went."

"If he's waiting for me at my house, I have this." She popped open the glove box and showed Daryl the gun she had stashed there.

"Good. Call me when you get home, just so I know you're okay."

"Will do."

"Okay. Bye, for real this time."

"Bye."

Daryl closed the door and waved to Carol one last time through the windshield before heading up to the house. He hoped Merle had gone to bed, because he wasn't ready to answer any of the questions he knew his brother would have for him.

* * *

Merle wasn't in the living room and the TV was off, letting Daryl know that he was most-likely in his room taking a nap. It wasn't even dark outside, yet. However, Daryl felt tired, too. It had been a long day. A long day that had turned out so well. Pressing his fingers to his mouth, he swore he could still feel Carol's lips on them.

Making his way to his room, Daryl closed the door behind him and leaned against it for a moment. A loud bang on the wall had him jumping. Merle's room was right next to his.

"You're welcome, little brother!"

Daryl sighed. So much for Merle not knowing about him and Carol.

* * *

When Carol drove up to her small house, there was no red mustang in the driveway. But that didn't mean Ed hadn't parked it somewhere and walked to her house. Taking the gun from the glove department and held it in her hand as she walked up to the front door. Using her key, she entered her house like she'd seen cops on TV do.

"Ed Peletier, if you're in here, I hope you have enough money for a reconstruction surgery because I'm going to blow your dick off!"

No response. But that didn't mean he wasn't there.

Carol quickly checked all the rooms, behind the curtains and even under bed. When there was no sign of Ed, she sighed in relief and placed her gun on the table beside her bed. She picked up the phone that was also there dialed Daryl's number.

He answered on the fifth ring. "Hello?" He sounded out of breath.

"Hey. I made it home. No Ed in sight." She sat on the edge of her bed and pressed the phone to her ear, already missing him though it had only been a few minutes since they separated.

"Good, cuz I would have driven over there and kicked his ass if he was."

"Are you saying I can't take care of myself, Daryl Dixon?" She teased.

"Uh, um...," he sounded flustered and Carol couldn't help but giggle. "Is this what I have to look forward to when I'm with you?" He grumbled. "Your constant teasin'."

"Yep!"

"Guess I'll just have to deal with it, then. As long as you don't mind if I return the favor."

Carol had never had a conversation like this with Ed on the phone or even in person. Most of the time, Ed talked about himself and what he as doing. When Carol tried to the same, it was as if he wasn't even listening anymore.

"Daryl," Carol whispered and clutched the phone with both hands.

"Yeah," he whispered back.

"I miss you."

"But you just saw me ten minutes ago!" He spoke in a normal tone. "Okay, I miss you, too," he was back to whispering. "Fuck, we sound kind of pathetic, huh?"

"We do." She flopped on her back. "But I don't care."

"Me neither."

* * *

Carol jerked awake when she heard breaking glass and the sound of a car peeling out of her driveway. Grabbing her gun from the bedside table, she ran downstairs. The window in her living room had been shattered and in the middle of the room was a brick. Wrapped around the brick, a piece of paper was tied.

 _Come back to me or things will only get worse._

Carol let the paper flutter to the ground as she stood. "Not on your life, Edward Peletier." With that, she went into the kitchen to get something to clean up the glass. Later, she would tell Daryl of what happened, but for now, she'd let him sleep. Honestly, she wasn't worried. This would be the last time Ed would do something like this to her.

After cleaning up the mess, Carol went right back to bed and didn't get up until the sun was beaming through her window.

* * *

"Got it!" Daryl tried not to run to the door when he heard the knock, knowing that it could only be one person.

"Well, there was no way in hell I was goin' to get it!" Merle shouted from the bathroom.

Daryl rolled his eyes and threw open the front door. Carol stood there, just as expected. However, instead of a smile in greeting, she looked serious and in one of her hands she held up a brick.

"Um...?" Daryl said, not knowing what else to say.

"Ed threw this through my window early this morning."

"I'm going to kill him!" Daryl clutched his hands and moved to step out the door. He'd go to that bastard's house right now and- Carol placed a hand on his chest.

"No, you're not."

Daryl sighed and relaxed. "We going to the police, then?"

"No." Carol looked down, slightly ashamed of what she was going to suggest. "I want to do something else. Something that is wrong and we'd be stooping to his level, but it's been something I've wanted to do for awhile."

Daryl was silent for few seconds and Carol worried that he was going to regret being with her, now. But then, he surprised her when he smiled slowly. "You want to do something to that Mustang of his, don't you?"

This man really knew her. "Yes!"

* * *

The next day, Ed walked out of his apartment, exciting to take a drive on the country roads in his newly-cleaned cherry red Mustang. However, when he walked outside, he nearly cried when he saw that all four tires of his baby were flat. On the windshield, a piece of paper flapped in the breeze. He snatched it up angrily.

 _Four tires should be the same amount as a new window. I say we're even and if you don't think so, I know someone who's REALLY good with cars. Who knows what might happen to your precious baby next._

It was almost too good to be true, but Daryl and Carol didn't hear from Ed anymore after that and they were able to progress in their relationship without worrying about the man trying anything else. Carol had even put her gun in a lockbox in her closet. No longer did she have a use for it.

 **Five Years Later**

"You gainin' weight, Darylina?" Merle asked as his little brother took a seat at the card table set up in the middle of Merle's living room.

"It's because of his wife's good cooking." Axel smiled and nudged Daryl in the side.

In the five years since Merle had won a date with Carol for Daryl, a lot of things had changed. Daryl went to school with Carol and after his second year, she asked him to move in with her. He graduated after four years and now, _owned_ the garage he had worked in before. He had become pretty successful and had been able to support Carol nicely. They had enough money to move to a bigger home but unless they _had_ to, Carol wanted to stay in the same house her grandmother had left her.

A month after graduation, he had asked Carol to be his wife and six months later, she became Carol Dixon.

"All right, all," Merle announced as he shuffled the deck of cards in his hands. "This is the last round of the night. Put your bets in. I putting my motorcycle down." Everyone knew what that meant when Merle bet his ride.

"Braves Tickets," Axel threw into the pot.

"My new set of tools," Oscar betted and wrote it down on a piece of paper.

"So, Daryl, you got that shiny new red Ford F-150 out there," Axel observed through the window at the vehicle in Merle's driveway. It dwarfed Daryl's old truck. "You putting that in or," he leaned across the table and winked. "How about a night with your wife?"

"Of course, when we say a night, it just means spending time with her and that's it," Oscar added with a grin.

Daryl glanced out the window at his truck. He had bought it brand new a few months before and had come to love it. Every time he looked at it, he was reminded of everything he had accomplished in his life. He had a great job and an amazing wife.

"I'll put in my truck. Carol's worth too much to me to place her in a betting pool."

Merle passed out the cards for their hands.

Daryl won.

 **The End**

* * *

 **I hope it was a good enough ending! Thank you all for reading!**


End file.
